For most of us, the linen closet is our main storage space. We use our linen closets to store a variety of items for the bathroom and the bedroom. Linen closet shelves can become overwhelmed with the bedding, toiletries, medicine, and other random bathroom products we can't fit anywhere else. Take a look at this before-and-after of a closet we did for one of our clients and think about these Tips for Taming Linen Closet Clutter:

1. Take everything out of the closet -- everything! Even if you know you want to keep it, take it out. Everything must be off the shelves before you can categorize the items together and visualize what items should go where on the shelves. Look for opportunities to purge unnecessary items -- maybe you have 10 beach towels and really only need 5!

2. After the purging is complete and the shelves are wiped down, take a look at what remains and start assigning items to particular shelves. Put items you use the least often on the higher shelves and stuff you use most frequently on the eye-level shelves. Tip: Keep a step stool right inside the closet along the wall to reach the items up top, even if you don't need them daily.

3. Here's a good way to keep your sets of sheets organized: fold the two sheets and pillowcase and place them into the set's other pillowcase. You can stack the pillowcases holding the sheets on the shelf next to each other or drop them in baskets!

4. Use baskets to hold the bulkier items (i.e. washcloths, rags, extra bath toys, etc.). Baskets help keep things from toppling over on the shelves and add a cute touch to the closet!

5. For the smaller items (i.e. toiletries, medicine, etc.) add storage drawers. And for things like perfumes/lotions that you'd like to be able to see at a quick glance, try a turntable.

For those of you feeling ambitious, there are some great ways to make your linen closet stylish as well as organized. Adding patterned shelf liners or removable wallpaper to the shelves or back wall of the closet will instantly bring some life to a boring linen closet! And for a little extra detail, create labels with gift tags for each basket!

Let us know what you think--what are some of your favorite storage solutions to use in the linen closet?